The big question today and always...HOW can I eat less? Really. HOW?? To eat less means that on that day or at that minute I want to lose weight more than I want to eat. There are times and days when the misery of being fat DOES overwhelm the desire to eat. But not all the time. Not even most of the time. I was thinking if I could just take things day by day--What could I do TODAY to be successful? Well...I'll walk home, I can drink water, I can exercise my knee. But in addition to all that (which I normally do anyway), I need to eat a little less. What is "a little?" does it mean giving up my second roll that I brought for lunch? Because, these are homemade rosemary rolls and I brought oil to dip them in and I'm looking forward to them WITH the cheese. So, no that won't work. Breakfast was pretty good, but then, breakfast usually is. Snacks? Dinner? Sigh. The daily "think ahead" simply feels like too much effort. I still LOVE Dr. Oz's concept of eating real food. I can do better with vegetables. But I don't want to blow up to 250 while I'm "doing better" with veggies. Changes are simply going to HAVE to be things that I really will do daily. There are a lot of things that I habitually eat. Can I make small changes there? over time, that should add up. I like the feel of that. I just struggle with impatience. For example. I used to habitually eat two tortillas any time I made fajitas. Now I habitually eat one, but I go back and have a little extra. Back to writing stuff down--identifying if it's habitual AND looking for an improvement. Also, I think it's important to acknowledge when I've made it. When what I'm doing is Good Enough--it never feels as though anything is ever Good Enough. But much of what I do is and I need to celebrate that, and BUILD on that.
Today--I had a GOOD ENOUGH breakfast!
Cream of wheat made with milk, and berries. A small glass of OJ. Two slices of bacon.
Yes, the bacon could go---but I love it, it's only 90 cal and overall my breakfast was GOOD ENOUGH!!
Lunch will be: a lipton cup of soup, 2 rosemary rolls, a good size slug of olive oil, mozzarella cheese an apple, a small brownie---like the infamous 1/16 of the pan size.
Ok---this is a semi-habitual lunch--although I usually don't indulge in the olive oil. I carefully avoided looking at the amount of calories the oil will have. I also usually add olives to this, but today I forgot. Here's what I will do---TODAY I will figure out how to make this lunch 600 cal. That's still a hefty lunch--but it's a GOOD ENOUGH lunch. If each of my meals really did equal 600 cal or less I'd be in good shape--especially, with a lighter breakfast.
I think I'll start a little recipe looking file--with my favorite lunches, dinners and snacks. When I make lasagne--MY lasagne, what is a 600 calorie meal? Because you know there has to be garlic bread involved. This is sounding good to me. Kind of a very modified gentle calorie count based on what I really eat. I can also add "bonus" healthy points to help me remember to do them. For example--I could have put cinnamon on my cream of wheat. Sometimes, I do use whole wheat flour when I make rolls, although I don't like that as well--so it isn't mandatory, but Yay me if I do it.
Actually, I think I have room in my regular yellow reciepe book for the first installments of Good Enough Meals. It's a start. I feel a little better now.
1. That Andrew the banker came to work today
2. That the trust might be transferred by Christmas.
3. For Laura Levine silly mysteries. (I think I'll write her a thanks)
4. That I don't feel compelled to have plastic surgery--I'm ok (sort of) with getting old
5. That we have enough to give to others
6. That the Gooch's can lend us a table for Thanksgiving
7. For fall leaves
8. Sherlock Holmes
9. Dad for exposing me to the wonder of books
10. Discovery of olives
11. Japanese bathtubs
12. The hitchhikers guide to the galaxy
13. The dali lama--and Portrait of Tibet
14. For people who annoy me, because I can see I have things to work on
15. For internet news--all those pictures of buffalo new york!
16. For piles of Christmas catalogs
17. For the lightning fast WSU copy center
18. That I like to shovel snow
19. For our fireplace
20. For the google drive
Losing weight in spite of myself.
I began this blog in February 2011 as a way to help me not quit trying to lose weight, and to learn a few things. It's been an interesting and powerful experience. It certainly confirms what I've long suspected--that although I am a genuinely happy cheery person in the main, I am NOT a happy cheery dieter. I DETEST losing weight. I resent being overweight in the first place and I am a virtuoso in the art of self-sabotage. And YET--I'm doing it! I'm fighting and kicking and EATING all the way down, but the weight is finally going down. The plan I was following in February was a half-baked one largely based on wishful thinking. I gained a little weight and decided to get real. I knew I couldn't just join weightwatchers or count calories or do any one plan and expect to be successful. I decided if I was going to bother to make the effort to lose weight I was going to throw everything I could think of at the problem. And so I do. My real "Day One" for this blog is April 1, 2011. I joined weight watchers, I joined caloriecount.com (awesome website), I read the blog losingweighteveryday.blogspot.com religiously, I keep this blog faithfully, I joined the health programs sponsored by my insurance, I use the principles from overeater's anonymous, I use my church's 12 step program as well, I subscribe--and use--Healthy Cooking Magazine.
The result of all this? Painfully slow progress (About 20 lbs in 10 months). But it IS progress and like the little engine that could I keep on trying in my rebellious way. I have no intention of quitting. This is by far the longest sustained weight loss effort I've ever made in my life. Successful I think, because for the first in my life I've done this MY way--which I've discovered, involves a lot of pizza and restaraunt food. I'm convinced this is the only way to lose weight. For me it must be MY way. For you it MUST be YOUR way. Not weight watcher's way, not your doctor's way, but YOUR way. Any plan or idea I use is only a tool.
The latest plan to lose weight my way began on Oct 29, 2013. It really is my own crazy plan. As you'll see if you read that post. I've implemented the best ideas of all sorts of eating plans and thrown out the scale. A couple of months in and I'm definitely healthier. I'm actually enjoying myself. I won't weigh until April 1, 2014, so I'll see then if this works the way I hope it will.
There is no magic weight loss bullet. But there IS a great deal of magic in the discovery of what I can happily live with (very different from what weight watchers tells me I can happily live with) and still have the body and health I want.
Good luck to all of us on this journey. It's quite a trip!
The result of all this? Painfully slow progress (About 20 lbs in 10 months). But it IS progress and like the little engine that could I keep on trying in my rebellious way. I have no intention of quitting. This is by far the longest sustained weight loss effort I've ever made in my life. Successful I think, because for the first in my life I've done this MY way--which I've discovered, involves a lot of pizza and restaraunt food. I'm convinced this is the only way to lose weight. For me it must be MY way. For you it MUST be YOUR way. Not weight watcher's way, not your doctor's way, but YOUR way. Any plan or idea I use is only a tool.
The latest plan to lose weight my way began on Oct 29, 2013. It really is my own crazy plan. As you'll see if you read that post. I've implemented the best ideas of all sorts of eating plans and thrown out the scale. A couple of months in and I'm definitely healthier. I'm actually enjoying myself. I won't weigh until April 1, 2014, so I'll see then if this works the way I hope it will.
There is no magic weight loss bullet. But there IS a great deal of magic in the discovery of what I can happily live with (very different from what weight watchers tells me I can happily live with) and still have the body and health I want.
Good luck to all of us on this journey. It's quite a trip!
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